Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) Price Target Lowered to $130.00 at Morgan Stanley

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) had its price objective decreased by Morgan Stanley from $140.00 to $130.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the apparel retailer’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on ROST. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Telsey Advisory Group decreased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $162.12.

Ross Stores Trading Up 2.0 %

Shares of ROST stock opened at $138.64 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $146.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $147.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market capitalization of $45.74 billion, a PE ratio of 21.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.10. Ross Stores has a 12-month low of $127.53 and a 12-month high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.95 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Ross Stores will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. This is a positive change from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.15%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ross Stores

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hahn Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 40.9% during the 4th quarter. Hahn Capital Management LLC now owns 74,059 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $11,203,000 after purchasing an additional 21,500 shares during the last quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at $269,000. Oak Ridge Investments LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 115,849 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $17,524,000 after buying an additional 11,060 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Ross Stores by 137.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,976,140 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $299,583,000 after buying an additional 1,144,774 shares during the period. Finally, Czech National Bank boosted its position in Ross Stores by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 71,933 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $10,881,000 after buying an additional 3,981 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

About Ross Stores

Ross Stores, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates off-price retail apparel and home fashion stores under the Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS brand names in the United States. Its stores primarily offer apparel, accessories, footwear, and home fashions. The company’s Ross Dress for Less stores sell its products at department and specialty stores to middle income households; and dd’s DISCOUNTS stores sell its products at department and discount stores for households with moderate income.